WHO sees first results from COVID drug trials within two weeks

The World Health Organization expects initial results within two weeks from clinical trials it is conducting of drugs that might be effective in treating COVID-19 patients, WHO Director General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus told a news briefing on Friday.

Mike Ryan, head of the WHO's emergencies programme, said it would be unwise to predict when a COVID-19 vaccine could be ready for mass distribution. While a vaccine candidate might show its effectiveness by year's end, the question was how soon it could be mass produced, he told the briefing.